EPISODE · Jun 1, 2018 · 7 MIN
Episode 07 (supplemental): Octopuses from Space!
from syzygy · host Chris Stewart
Syzygy is produced by Chris Stewart and co-hosted by Dr Emily Brunsden from the Department of Physics at the University of York.Find us on Twitter: @syzygypod twitter.com/SyzygyPodOr just visit us at home: syzygy.fmEmily at the University of York: www.york.ac.uk/physics/people/brunsden/Chris online: kipstewart.comSome of the things we talk about in this episode:The Octopuses from Space paper: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0079610718300798Panspermia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panspermia Octopuses? Octopi? Octopodes? https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/explore/what-are-the-plurals-of-octopus-hippopotamus-syllabus Octopuses are awesome: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCAIedFgdY0 Octopuses are really awesome: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AG6JebW63f4 Occam’s Razor: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occam%27s_razor
What this episode covers
So, apparently, octopuses come from space. Or something. Emily and Chris chat about a ... curious ... paper that came out recently, which proposes an explanation for the Cambrian Explosion, the huge increase in diversity of life across the planet 500 million years ago. The suggested cause? Possibly viruses from space ... possibly octopus eggs in a meteor ... oh, who knows? It all seems a tad speculative but it's fun to discuss anyway. This is a short supplemental episode while Chris takes a holiday and Emily curses him while she does some marking.
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Episode 07 (supplemental): Octopuses from Space!
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